Brassica supplants Go Fish, Cindy Pawlcyn's incongruous seafood restaurant, once adrift in a sea of cabernet vineyards. Set in a sprawling indoor/outdoor space in St. Helena, Pawlcyn's Mediterranean menu works both sides of its coast: pork tonnato and Spanish braised beef, Greek-inspired dolmas and sour trahana stew from European shores; fattoush and Moroccan lamb from the Middle East and Africa. Jennifer Ingellis's wine list is an unfettered global selection, about two-thirds from California, the rest from Greece, Lebanon, France, Italy, Spain and even Germany and Austria. In a special nod to the valley in which it resides, the list includes "the Brassica 12," a dozen wines by the glass from Napa wineries that don't have tasting rooms—which you can take out by the bottle too.

—Patrick J. Comiskey

Brassica, 641 Main St., St. Helena; 707-963-0070, brassicanapavalley.com (reviewed W&S, 12/11)

Martini House is restaurautrepreneur Pat Kuleto's newest venture, a low-slung 1920s Craftsman named for its original owner, opera singer and purported bootlegger Walter Martini. It's lodgy and redwood warm, the lighting softly amber, with no table too far from a hearth. The cuisine, too, is cozy and hearthlike: Chef Todd Humphries draws from local plants and neighboring farms for robust plates like crispy veal sweetbreads with sorrel purée, or venison loin with a turnip gratin and braised dandelion greens. Wine Director Michael Ouellette and Sommelier Lisa Minucci have created a 500-selection wine list that's far-ranging and whimsical, with choices that highlight the restaurant's winery neighbors, wines by restaurateurs (including Kuleto and Ouellette), and "Women Winemakers We Love."

—P.J.C.

Martini House, 1245 Spring St., St. Helena, CA; 707-963-2233.

Market projects itself onto staid St. Helena's Main Street with the use of a stencil and a pencil spot, forming a welcome mat of light. Aiming to please Napa Valley locals and guests alike, Market is anchored by veteran maitre d' Nick Peyton, a former principal at Restaurant Gary Danko. Chef Douglas Keane serves ample portions of home-style American classics, from mac 'n cheese to chicken pot pie, while the small, focused, affordable wine list offers a few surprises. A distinguished selection of Napa wines is balanced by picks from Alsace, Austria, Galicia, Piedmont and the Rhône, thanks to Bobby Stuckey, who most recently directed the wine program at the French Laundry.

—P.J.C.

Market,1347 Main Street, St. Helena, CA; 707-963-3799

Redd might be the new kid on the block in Yountville's restaurant row but the place already shows the confidence of stalwarts like Bouchon and Bistro Jeanty. The menu may be more contemporary chic than Napa-French, but the broad windows overlooking Mt. Veeder plant you firmly in the rural ease of Napa Valley-as do dishes like glazed pork belly or Wolfe ranch quail with warm lentils. Wine director Chris Blanchard-who followed chef-owner Richard Reddington from L'Auberge du Soleil-balances a selection of top Napa wines with intriguing choices like Marsannay rosé.

—Wolfgang M. Weber

6480 Washington St, Yountville, CA; 707-944-2222, reddnapavalley.com

Wine Garden accents sustainable farming on the plate and in the glass. Run by the Nord family, long-time Napa grapegrowers and champions of sustainable farming, this tasting room-cum-restaurant showcases 50 wine producers who use the Nord family's fruit. Chef Michael Bilger builds the menu from locally farmed produce, organic meats and sustainably-farmed seafood, presenting it with a Southern slant.

—Genevieve Robertson